3

Karakura High

Ichigo and Shizuko stared at one another one morning as they ate breakfast. Isshin had signed her up for high school without even asking her, and Ichigo had been given the task of looking after her. He bit into a piece of toast in slight annoyance before feeling bad. It wasn't her fault that his father was an idiot. He didn't mind watching over her, having put her into a little section of his mind that dealt with his precious people.

"Shi-Chan, you look so pretty!" Yuzu informed the older teen.

Shizuko turned a bright pink and rubbed the back of her head in slight embarrassment. Karin kept an eye on her older brother and grinned to herself when he gained an expression of agreement. She had a bet against her dad that those two would eventually end up together while he was betting on one of the girls at his school.

"Did you make sure to pin on your badge?" Ichigo questioned Shizuko.

He got a nod and looked to see the badge that informed people that she was a mute hanging from the lapel of her blazer. She looked professional, even her hair was tamed for once. He could see her full face, though she had a few stubborn strands of hair that liked to fall across her freckle-dotted nose. It didn't matter if she clipped them back, they'd just fall into place again.

"Ichigo!" Said teen brought his leg up for a kick when he heard his father yell his name.

"Why can't you let your son eat in peace?" He growled as his foot dug into his father's face.

"Might as well eat up, Shi," Karin informed the teen that had stopped eating to send the two males a look, "You'll want your strength for your first day of school."

Shizuko did just that. She was getting used to the way that Isshin and Ichigo communicated with one another. She happily bit into a piece of toast and watched as Yuzu tried to distract Isshin with food. The strawberry-blonde finished her food while Ichigo reached his melting point.

Yuzu and Karin watched as the taller teen was able to get Shizuko to follow him with just a look. Isshin let out a sad sound as a small, sympathetic smile was sent his way by their mute live in. Yuzu let out a sound as she quickly caught up with the two to give them their bentos. She waved at them as they headed out.

"Don't worry about anything people say about you," Ichigo informed Shizuko.

She thought for a few seconds before slowly signing why. He was exceptionally glad that he had found a few videos on the internet for Japanese sign language and had plopped her down. It wasn't as in depth as it could be, more common sayings than anything else.

"You're foreign, remember," He pointed out, "Karakura typically doesn't have problems against foreigners, but there's always a few people."

She didn't look too bothered by that, but he knew that she was. The slight clench of her jaw as she thought was enough to show her annoyance. He brought a hand up and ruffled her hair. She pouted and lightly batted at his hand before trying to fix the messed-up locks. It probably took her a while to make it lay flat.

You have friends? She asked him, a tiny smile on her face. He scratched his cheek at that and nodded.

"Yeah, you'll end up meeting them today," He told her.

She nodded in understanding and went back to simply holding her book bag. She watched as people passed by them and slowly became shy as the number increased. She took in a quiet deep breath to try and relax. She looked towards the different stores and became interested in a small toy shop.

She blinked as a woman with a chain on her chest walked into the store. Workers in japan typically welcomed customers in, but there had been no reaction to the woman. Like the worker couldn't see her. She almost asked Ichigo but thought against it.

"Here we are," Ichigo said in a monotoned way.

He got a silent chuckle out of her and they went through the school gates. He'd go with her to make sure she got her schedule. It was quick, and soon she was looking at her student ID with a curious expression. Her name, bar her first, was written in Katakana. It was interesting to see.

"You're worse than I am when taking a picture." Ichigo informed her as he looked at her photo.

A stoic Shizuko stared back at him. She seemed to refuse to smile for her pictures. It was a strange trait but not one that was uncommon. It did make it look like a mug shot. She gave him a look at that and seemingly became embarrassed. It wasn't like she could explain why.

"Ichigo!" His voice was yelled from the end of the hallway.

Ichigo held up an arm and clotheslined the teen that had rushed towards his position. Shizuko blinked and wondered if she should help. She didn't even know what really happened. She felt her eye twitch when the teen used his position from the ground to peek up her skirt.

"Shizuko, this is Asano Keigo," Ichigo introduced, "That guy on his phone is Kojima Mizuiro."

"Nice to meet you," Mizuiro said as he gave a bow and she returned it.

"Who's this, Ichigo?" Keigo asked as he quickly got up from the floor and moved around Shizuko in an energetic fashion, "Did you get a girlfriend?"

"Shut up," Ichigo grumbled, "This is Potter Shizuko, she's new here."

"Potter, huh? Are you from England?" Mizuiro questioned.

She shook her head and it was easy to see that the topic made her highly uncomfortable. Mizuiro wisely backed off, if Ichigo was walking with her then he knew better. Well, he knew better than Keigo who was peppering her with questions like that. He watched as her expression went blank as she tried to understand half of what was asked of her. He talked so fast!

"Let's get to class," Ichigo said.

He quickly steered her towards the class and could feel how tense she was. She turned her head to face him and smiled. Thank you. He gave her a nod. He stood with her as the homeroom teacher was informed of her inability to talk.

Shizuko stared at the class and heard the muttering as the teacher introduced her. Her hands were in front of her and her grip on her bag was tight. Quite a few people were talking about her hair. She didn't blame them; slightly pink hair was unusual. She didn't even know who in her family had it, and she never asked. Questions had been frowned upon. She bowed her head in a shy manner and a few of the boys muttered something to one another.

She was thankful when she was sent to the empty seat next to Ichigo. The lecture began and she frowned slightly. She wasn't extremely proficient with the language yet, something that Ichigo had explained to the teacher. She could pick out key words to get the gist, but it wasn't conversational Japanese like Keigo or the Kurosaki family. She simply wrote down what was being put on the board and made a mental note to translate it later.

She was relieved when lunch rolled around. She sat on the roof with Ichigo and his friends, meeting a boy named Yasutora Sado who went by Chad, and ate the lunch that Yuzu had made. Ichigo had been nice and had gotten her a small thing of strawberry milk. He was given a large smile of thanks as she drank from the carton. He had an arm thrown over his shoulders and he was dragged away from the group by Keigo.

"Ichigo, are you and Shizuko an item?" Keigo asked in a hushed voice.

"No." Ichigo denied with his cheeks darkening out of slight embarrassment.

"Really?" Keigo asked with a surprised glint before a grin broke out on his face, "That means I have a chance!"

"I doubt it, Asano-San," Mizuiro commented.

Ichigo tuned out the argument and turned to the girl in question. Her and Chad were sitting together, enjoying their lunch. She was teaching Chad a few signs, after he had politely asked. She was patient and slowly walked him through it. It was similar as to how he taught her, but at the same time it was completely natural for her. Chad was also a smart guy, smarter than people gave him credit for, it had to be easy for him to pick up a nonverbal way of speaking.

Lunch ended and he noted that Shizuko had tossed her trash in the correct receptacles before trailing behind him. She was on clean up duty and he'd wait until she was done with it to head home. He'd spend some time with Chad, that was always a good time.

Shizuko stared at the classroom door for a few seconds before starting to clean up. There wasn't much for her to do really. Just pick up the few pieces of trash on the floor, push in the chairs, clean the board, and knock the chalk dust from the erasers. It was simple enough. She did it with minimal complaining, not that she truly could complain. A tug on her lengthy hair caught her attention and she turned with a slight wince.

"Hey, Gaijin," A Teen, with blonde dyed hair and dark eyes, said, "Is this your actual hair color ?"

She gave a small nod. She felt her heart hammering in her chest as her hands began to slightly shake. Ichigo has warned her that not everyone would be welcoming. She was now face to face with one such person, and she couldn't call for help.

"Who the hell has pink hair?" The teen slightly sneered as he pulled on her hair again.

It was a harsh tug and one that pulled her down a bit. If she could make a sound a surprised cry would've fallen from her lips. As it was a sharp intake of breath informed the teen that he had caused her some pain. He tugged again and she was pulled forward. He began to move towards the teacher's desk. She had one hand to her hair and another one reaching out to try and pry his away.

He gave a harsh tug and a flash of silver caught her attention. She fell to the ground in slight surprise. Strands of her strawberry blonde hair surrounded her, and she stared at them in slight shock. She could feel her hair brushing against her cheek and neck. It hadn't been an even cut.

"You need to leave, Gaijin," the teen informed her in a cold voice, "Go back to your home country."

He left her in her slight shock. She expected bullies, but she didn't expect physical harm. Her hands closed into fists as she stared at the strands. So many years of hair growth was gone. She had grown out her hair so that she could wear the hair pin her grandfather made her. Now…now she couldn't. She slowly got up to her feet and began to clean up the mess.

She was moving about in a slight daze, unsure of her actual actions. She was brought out of it by a scowling Ichigo. She blinked up at him in an owlish manner and slowly brought a hand up. Repeat.

"What happened to your hair?" He questioned.

She didn't answer, and he watched how she looked down at her feet in embarrassment and shame. He knew that expression, Yuzu sometimes got it when she wanted to ask for something but didn't want to be a bother. He easily gathered that someone else had cut her hair, as messy as it was she liked it and wouldn't cut it without a good reason. He made a mental note to find out who did it. She'd react to her bully, he was able to read her discomfort with ease, and he'd teach the punk a lesson.

She tugged on his sleeve and he was brought out of his thoughts. She was giving him a worried look and he sighed. She needed to lean how to care about herself. She was the one that had her hair cut and yet she was concerned with him. He knew it was due to his scowling, she never liked being around angry people.

"I'm not mad at you," He informed her.

It doesn't matter, she signed to him, It's okay.

It wasn't, and they both knew it. She looked up at him and waited to see where they were going. She didn't really remember the way home, but she knew that after a week she would. He put his bag behind his shoulder and began to lead the way. She trailed behind him with a blank expression on her face. She brought a hand up and looked at the slightly longer strands, a slight wince appeared on her face.

She was upset about her hair; she just couldn't vocalize it. She blinked when Ichigo came to a sudden stop. She ran right into his back. She signed her apologies when he looked over his shoulder at her. The slight smirk on his face caused her to pout slightly. He was too amused at the fact that she had ran right into him.

"Mind waiting here?" He questioned.

She gave him a curious look but gave a small nod. She leaned against the wall of a nearby shop and waited for him to come back. She looked at her hair and tugged on the locks in thought. It was hard for her not to stare at it, it was such a strange thing to happen. She never thought that she'd run into such trouble here in japan. She thought that it was behind her, back in her home country. She had left so that she wouldn't be hurt again.

She was far too naïve to believe that she wouldn't be hurt in a different country. She thought back to Yuzu and Karin, and a fond smile appeared on her face. She always wanted little siblings and the two Kurosaki sisters felt just like that to her. They had welcomed her with open arms, though Karin had been a bit more suspicious of her before figuring out that she wasn't dangerous, and gave her a nickname.

She blinked when something came into her field of vision. It was a small, stuffed, white bear. She couldn't help the slight smile on her face at the sight of it. She looked up at Ichigo and noted that his cheeks were flushed, and she accepted the bear. It was his way of trying to make her feel a bit better about what had happened. It was sweet of him.

She followed behind him as they headed towards home. The Bear was tucked under her arm and she had a somewhat happy smile on her face. It was nice to feel cared for. It hadn't happened in years.

"Shi-Chan, what'd you do to your hair?" Yuzu questioned the second the two entered the house.

"Some jerk at school decided to cut it," Ichigo said before Shizuko could tell the girl that everything was fine.

"Don't go picking a fight," Yuzu chided her older brother, "I don't think that's what Shi-Chan would want."

Ichigo looked towards the girl and question and she nodded her agreement. She didn't care much for violence, though that probably made her look like a bit of a pushover. He scowled at her and she withered under it. Karin came down the stairs and sighed. She stepped up to her older brother and jabbed her fingers I to his side.

"Relax, Ichigo," Karin drawled, "All that matters was that she wasn't physically hurt."

Shizuko gave a few nods of agreement and signed her thanks to Karin and Yuzu. The two really understood her better than she first thought. It scared her a bit. She'd never had someone who knew her that well.

She was dragged to a bathroom and Ichigo watched as his sisters marched the taller girl away. The slight smile on her face was enough to let him know that she didn't really mind. She was content to spend time with the two. He could hear the two girls talking to her and sighed. She may not want him to get back at the guy who cut her hair, but he sure as hell won't let the guy do anything else.

"I-CHI-GO!" He dodged a kick from his dad and sent the man a slightly annoyed glare.

"Stop attacking your own son dammit!" Ichigo yelled as the man slammed into the ground face first.

"What's got you so mad?" Isshin questioned as he held a hand to his nose.

"It's nothing," Ichigo muttered.

Isshin watched as his son went up the stairs to his room and let out a soft sigh. Something had happened, and he wasn't sure what. He could hear his daughters talking to Shizuko somewhere in the house. He rubbed his nose a bit and winced at the slight pain. He thought his son would have hit him not dodge him. He went into the clinic to help some of the patients. He was starting to piece things together once he saw Shizuko helping Yuzu prepare dinner.

She had a small bob, the pink tinge to her hair was stronger when it was shorter. The one singular long strand was gone as well, having been cut at the same length and pulled into side bangs. He was reminded of his wife when she was around the same age, but there were several differences between the two. Ichigo was the most like his wife, especially in his personality.

"Looks good," Ichigo quietly complimented Shizuko.

He got a tiny smile that was paired with a light blush. She really was easily flustered, and Karin liked to tease the older girl about it. Yuzu brought her attention back to the vegetables that she was put in charge of cutting. She held the knife in a delicate grip but was able to easily chop through the cabbage.

She flinched when she felt that familiar feeling again. It was distant this time, further away. She looked up towards the source and frowned slightly. She felt something poke her side and she jumped up and sent Yuzu a slight pout.

"If you keep getting distracted you might cut your fingers," Yuzu chided her.

She gave the girl a fond smile and nodded her understanding. She gave the vegetables her full attention and went back to cutting. She shouldn't worry about something that was far enough away to barely be felt. Yet, she hated feeling it. It happened enough that she was starting to get worried about it. Why did she feel such things with such frequency?

The feeling had to belong to a monster like the one that had attacked her a month ago. She put the vegetables in the area where Yuzu had indicated and was pushed towards the plates. She was given a new job of setting the table. She didn't blame Yuzu for not letting her help with the food any further. She wasn't used to cooking, and Yuzu knew it.

She could only dice and peel vegetables. That was the extent of her cooking abilities, she'd have to start asking Yuzu if she could help more often. Cooking would be a skill she'd need in the future and Yuzu was a fantastic one. She could deal with being poked in the side when doing something wrong.

Dinner was a normal affair with Isshin goading his son and Karin commenting that he shouldn't do that. Shizuko was a bit distracted, that feeling from earlier had gotten closer. It was she was trying to listen to something through cotton and the closer it got the clearer it was. It was dark, and left her legs trembling under the table.

She felt it grow even closer as she did her homework before studying. She found it difficult to focus with the distant feeling, but was able to get it done. She laid on her bed in a pair of borrowed pajamas from Ichigo, surprisingly she was too tall for Yuzu or Karin to lend her clothes, and thought about what she was really feeling. It was like hearing, but at the same time feeling something with a fiber of her being that she hadn't realized existed. It was like she was sensing things with every sense and yet no sense at the same time. It was like walking around in the dark while looking for a light switch that was on a wall across from her.

She felt it grow closer and curled up into a ball with her bear. Her hands covered her ears when she heard something scream. It reverberated through her and caused her heart to hammer in her chest. She closed her eyes when it came even closer. She blinked when it vanished. It was so sudden. She realized that the air felt lighter than it had before. She took in a shaky breath and rolled onto her back to stare up at the ceiling.

What ever the hell she was sensing, she wanted no part of it. She went to sleep with that mindset, not even bothering to climb under the covers, and had nightmare after nightmare. Each one a different moment of her life that she'd rather forget, yet had to watch. She woke up the next day to rain and dark circles under her eyes. She was starting to hate the rain.